Harem Daily Life

Chapter 1051 Kang Mowan Ascends the Throne

He Yinuo is usually in good health, with a good appetite and sleep, but this time she fell ill. Fortunately, she did not have a high fever, but she had a severe cough. She drank the medicine prescribed by Physician Liu, but she had no appetite.

To avoid He Yinuo feeling unwell and having problems at the coronation ceremony, she was left at the post station. The Empress Dowager and Mu Yu stayed with her, while Tao Yanyan, along with He Yanran and the two princes, accompanied He Linzhang to attend the coronation ceremony of the Xia Kingdom's ruler.

As the most important guest invited by the Xia Kingdom, Da Zhou was naturally treated with the utmost courtesy and was seated in the most prestigious seat.

As the ceremony began, the new ruler of Xia, Kang Mowan, dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe, slowly ascended the high platform amidst a crowd of people. His face was stern, his eyes exuding majesty, and every gesture displayed the demeanor of a king. Apart from He Linzhang and Tao Yanyan's group, everyone else knelt down to pay their respects and shouted "Long live the King!"

The old ministers who had previously served the late emperor of Xia either switched allegiance to the new ruler, or were imprisoned or exterminated. At this moment, the Xia court was peaceful and harmonious, showing no sign that just a few months ago, the palace was filled with fighting and bloodshed.

Kang Mowan surveyed the entire audience, gesturing for everyone to rise. His gaze lingered briefly on He Linzhang and the others before a slight smile appeared on his lips: "Today, I ascend the throne by the mandate of heaven. It is truly an honor for me to have the Emperor and Empress of the Great Zhou come to celebrate with me."

He Linzhang nodded slightly, and Tao Yanyan beside him also bowed slightly.

Kang Mowan glanced at Kang Pingzhi, who was standing at the head of the table below, and said with a smile, "We hurriedly arranged the engagement between Pingzhi and Princess Yanran before. Now that the matter has been settled and the situation is stable, it is time to arrange the wedding of the two children."

He Linzhang nodded: "The Empress and I are going on this trip for two reasons: first, to celebrate the ascension of the new emperor of Hexia Kingdom, and second, to send off the bride. Yanran is my own niece, raised under the Empress Dowager's care. She is of noble status, and the eldest prince should cherish her."

Kang Pingzhi immediately said respectfully to He Linzhang, "Yes, Pingzhi will certainly not fail the princess. Please rest assured, Your Majesty."

The courtiers of Xia looked at each other. The new emperor had ascended the throne, and the eldest prince was the legitimate son of the emperor, so there was a high probability that he would be made crown prince in the future. How could his first wife be a foreign princess?

Immediately, a court official stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I believe this marriage still needs to be reconsidered."

The atmosphere at the scene froze because of his words. Tao Yanyan, who had been smiling, lost a smile and looked at the courtier who had offered a rebuttal.

"Your Majesty, while the Princess of Da Zhou is indeed noble, it is still advisable that the Crown Prince's principal wife should come from a prominent family in our Xia Kingdom. If in the future... Your Majesty places your hopes on the Crown Prince, but the Crown Prince's wife is a foreigner, wouldn't that be awkward?"

If a woman from the Great Zhou becomes the Crown Princess, and she might become the Empress in the future, will the Xia Kingdom still be their Xia Kingdom? Will it eventually become part of the Great Zhou? After all, the neighboring Yan Kingdom is a living example. Now, where is the Yan Kingdom? It has long since become Yan Province of the Great Zhou.

The others also started discussing it. Some families had daughters they wanted to send to the palace, either to the new emperor's harem or to the eldest prince's residence. They should be given some benefit.

The Crown Prince's consort is currently highly sought after; whichever family she ends up with will become the most powerful maternal relative in the Xia Kingdom.

Nobody's stupid enough to give up such a good position.

Kang Mowan was terrified. He had been supported by the Emperor of Great Zhou and dared not betray Great Zhou. Unfortunately, his subordinates were blind and could say such ignorant things.

He coughed lightly: "Minister Si, please be careful with your words. The marriage between Pingzhi and Yanran was arranged long ago. It is our honor to marry the Princess of Da Zhou. Stop talking nonsense and leave now."

Kang Pingzhi also rolled his eyes at Lord Si, then looked at He Yanran with eyes full of "You have to believe me!" He Yanran glared at him and turned her head away.

"Your Majesty, I also believe that what Lord Si said is absolutely right..."

"Shut up!" Kang Mowan stopped the minister in time. "I said the marriage is settled. If anyone dares to cause trouble now, I won't hesitate to make sure that he and his clan can never cause trouble again."

The threatening words frightened all the officials in the court, who dared not say another word. After all, the new emperor at the head of the court did not even spare his own brother.

He swept his fierce gaze across the assembled court officials, each one of them oblivious to their own mortality. If it weren't for Pingzhi's marriage proposal to the Princess of Da Zhou, thus establishing a marriage alliance with Da Zhou, would Da Zhou have gone to such lengths to help me ascend the throne?

These ignorant fools dare to refuse the marriage in front of the Great Zhou Emperor! How dare you!

He smiled apologetically at He Linzhang: "It is my fault for not managing my subordinates strictly, which has made the King of Great Zhou laugh at me."

He Linzhang glanced at him indifferently, his eyes filled with pressure, and then swept his gaze over the Xia Kingdom's people: "He Yanran's surname is He. The Empress and I personally escorted her to her wedding, showing her even greater importance than a legitimate princess. If you want to say anything that might offend anyone, you'd better think twice."

His voice, though not angry, carried an imposing authority; the dignified presence of a superior nearly made the Xia Kingdom's court officials lose their footing. Lord Si, who had been the first to voice his objections, was drenched in cold sweat, his legs trembling.

"The dowry that the Great Zhou gave to Princess Yanran is probably more than all the major families in the Xia Kingdom combined. If it weren't for the fact that Kang Pingzhi still cares about our Yanran, why would we have gone to the trouble of marrying into this family from so far away? Our Great Zhou hasn't had a marriage alliance for more than twenty years."

Border trade brings in hundreds of thousands of taels of silver a year. As long as He Yanran lives well and the Great Zhou and Xia Kingdom do not fall out, Xia Kingdom can earn all of it. It would be foolish to give up such a huge dowry.

Tao Yanyan held He Yanran's hand, supporting her.

The people of Xia dared not utter a sound. They recalled how their late emperor's son had failed to marry into the Great Zhou Dynasty. The past events were vivid in their minds. Comparing the two, they suddenly realized that the right to choose this marriage alliance had always been with the Great Zhou Dynasty, not them. It was only because the Great Zhou Dynasty agreed that they had the opportunity to become related by marriage.

Kang Mowan coughed lightly and smiled at Tao Yanyan, saying, "Please calm down, Empress Tao. The words of a few ignorant ministers are not to be taken seriously. I am very satisfied with this marriage. The two children are also in love with each other and are a match made in heaven. There is no need to pay attention to the discordant voices. I will discuss the details of the wedding with Empress Tao later. Please rest assured, Your Majesty and Empress Tao, I will treat Princess Yanran as my own daughter and will never let her suffer the slightest grievance."

Tao Yanyan smiled and said, "We have known each other for more than ten years, so I am not worried that Your Majesty will go back on your word. However, Your Majesty also knows that I am protective of my own. If there is anything that will anger Yanran in the future, I will certainly seek justice for her. If this damages the harmony between our two countries, Your Majesty will not be angry."

“That day will never come!” Kang Mowan glanced at Kang Pingzhi and gave him his assurance: “Please rest assured, Empress Tao, my son is just like me. He always keeps his word. If he says he will treat Yanran well, then he will treat her well for life.”

He Yanran looked at Kang Pingzhi, and Kang Pingzhi also stared intently at her.